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By LARRY LAGE
ANN ARBOR, Mich .– Jim Harbaugh and the Michigan Wolverines are eagerly awaiting a fresh start.
They need it.
College football’s most successful program has just had a tough season, even by pandemic standards. Michigan has won just two games, lost four and called off three due to a COVID-19 outbreak.
And in recent seasons, the winged-helmets and rich tradition have lost their luster and national relevance as losses to better teams – especially to rival Ohio State – have fallen. are accumulated.
The Wolverines will open the unranked season in the Associated Press’s college football poll on Saturday against Western Michigan at Big House, where they failed to win in 2020.
“There’s a bigger chip on our shoulder as a team,” wide receiver Mike Sainristil said on Monday. “We have a lot to prove. I feel like no matter where we are, whether it’s the rankings or how people see us, I just feel like we’re underdogs for some reason.
Maybe that’s because as an underdog in six years under Harbaugh, Michigan is 0-11.
While this brand will not be tested as a big favorite against the Broncos, it will likely be tested on the night of 9/11 against No.20 Washington and it will likely be tested again against the Buckeyes, fourth, at home to close out the season. regular season.
At least for newbies, the Wolverines go with Cade McNamara, second in red shirt, to quarterback. He beat highly touted rookie JJ McCarthy for the job, as the returning player expected.
“I had no doubts,” McNamara said.
McNamara took the first snap of the team’s last game – a loss to Penn State in late November – and he played in three more games as a substitute. He was 43 of 71 for 425 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions.
“Last season was very emotional,” said McNamara. “I got injured in the last game, which is really my first, like, real start. It was obviously very frustrating. Everyone is aware of what happened last season and I think we’ve done enough, this offseason for sure, to put together a season that’s going to be different.
Michigan will have a fresh take on defense, but no one in the corn-and-blue is willing to say too much about how Mike Macdonald’s plan will be different from Don Brown’s man-to-man preferences.
Harbaugh said he tested Macdonald, 34, who was an assistant to his brother, John, and the Baltimore Ravens, by creating play situations that had not been scripted in advance in recent workouts.
“Feel like he’s ready,” Harbaugh said.
Macdonald was part of a renewal of the coaching staff, including bringing back former Michigan players Mike Hart and Ron Bellamy. The players, motivated to transform the team, seem and seem to be even more excited than in the past for the start of the season.
“So far the energy has been different this season,” McNamara said. “I’m sure a lot of players can attest to that.”
Harbaugh can too.
“One thing that has been constant has been the energy of our team, the enthusiasm of the club,” he said. “I think it was generated by both the coaches and the players. “
Harbaugh, however, is only too aware that the offseason buzz and spirited practice don’t always lead to successful seasons.
“I think we have a very good team, and then you really have to play the game,” he said. “You have to play the game to know exactly where you are. “
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